Boom
by sunshinetuna1
Summary: There was the smell of gas, an explosion and then a fade to black.
1. Chapter 1

**Mariana POV**

"Mariana please head to the library to take the makeup test. See Ms. Goldwyn, she will make sure that you are set. You have one hour from when you arrive to hand it to her. Good luck." Timothy said to me. I packed my bag and headed to the library. "Stupid roughhousing Jesus and Jude and stupid accidental punch causing me to visit the emergency dentist. Stupid makeup test." I mutter under my breath on my way to the library.

I checked in with the librarian, got my test and went to sit down at one of the tables. I was about halfway into the test when I could smell gas pretty strongly. I asked Ms. Goldwyn about it, but she told me to shush. I finished the test, handed it in and headed toward the doors. As I got closer to the door, the smell got stronger and then BOOM! and everything went black.

I woke up and spent a moment trying to figure it all out. I could tell I was on the floor and that I was still in the library at school. I could tell that my head was pounding and I felt a bit sick. I could tell that I couldn't really move. I turned my head trying to figure out why I couldn't move, but my neck was hurting a bit too. I take the deepest breath I can, close my eyes and count to ten hoping this is just a bad dream. I open my eyes again and it is not a dream. I am actually here stuck. I start calling out for help from someone, anyone but it is too loud around and my voice just gets drowned out. I look around to see if anyone is around and I see a girl on my right. She is laying on her stomach with a huge pile of books on her back. I try to see if I can reach her. "Just a little further." I think to myself. I just barely touch her and she looks at me. She looks like she is in a lot of pain. "What's your name?" I ask her. "What?" She calls back. I wish I could help her but I can't. My head starts to pound and it feels like my brain is going to fall out of my head and before I know it I fade into the black again.

 **Lena POV**

"So if we apply for the MusicFlows grant we may be able to take the kids to..Monte does it smell like gas to you?" Monte nods. We both get up and Monte calls the janitor while I head toward the utility room. I get about 10 feet from my office when I hear a boom, feel a shake and in a moment it is over. I can't tell if there was an earthquake or what. But something happened. I call the fire department, it's a stat requirement to call 911 after an earthquake during school hours. I find Monte, we quickly decide to evacuate the school and I make the announcement.

I head outside by the big oak tree between the school and the parking lot. It's a spot that I have always told the kids to meet at if the school ever gets evacuated. I wait there. The first kid to arrive is a panicked Callie. I can see that she is looking around, I know she is looking for Jude. Even thought she wont say that she was looking specifically for him, but I know that. Jude is the next one to come out, which relieves Callie and makes me feel a lot better as well. Brandon and Jesus meet up by the tree. I kiss my kids and wait for Mariana. I know that she was in Timothy's class and I know that his room is at the back of the school so I know it might take her longer then the other kids. It seems to be taking a long time for Mariana to get to the meeting spot and I can see that Jesus is starting to get antsy. I reach over and pull hime into a hug "Hey bud, I'm sure she's fine. She's in Timothy's class and there are still a lot of kids coming out. Just give her a few more minutes." I say that with the most convincing voice I can, I hope the words are true. I look around and see Timothy pushing his way through the crowd of kids towards me. "Hey Lena, my class had to evacuate out the windows. When we opened the doors there was a huge crack in the hall. Is Mariana with you? I sent her to the library to do a makeup test and she hadn't made it back to me before the boom." he said. "No she hasn't made it back. I thought she was with you. Thanks for telling me. I will keep you posted." I say. I am scared. "Mariana, where are you?" I ask mostly into the sky. I see Monte coming towards me and in the distance I see a blonde female cop and hope and pray that it is Stef. Monte comes over "Lena, I talked to the fire marshall. He said there was a gas line explosion. It was worst in the library. We need to work on something to say to the media which is starting to show up and we need to organize getting the kids to their worried parents." "Wait, Monte, the library? Mariana was in there, or maybe is still in there. I don't know. The point is, until I know where my youngest daughter is I won't be doing anything else Monte. My family comes first." I say to my boss in the hopes that I don't get fired over this. I hear the officer calling my name in the distance and as she gets closer, I know its Stef. "I'm so glad to see you" I saw as I hug my wife. She proceeds to kiss each of the kids. "Where's Miss Thing?" Stef asks. "She was in the library when the explosion happened. I don't know if she's still there or what but I know that I haven't seen her" "I'm going to go and find our youngest daughter. I will be back" Stef said and she left toward the library.

 **AN: So I don't know how many chapters this will be but I have ideas for a few. If you have anything you are desperate to see let me know. Otherwise have a great day or evening (depending on when you read this, I read these stories before bed).**


	2. Chapter 2

**Stef POV**

As soon as I realized that Mariana might be in trouble, I take off running towards the school. It was difficult given the crowd of kids but I finally made it to the police line in what felt like forever. "Hey Brian, I think my daughter might be in the school still in the library. Any chance I can get in and take a look?" Brian, dressed in his fire suit looks at me "Sorry Stef. It's not safe in there. My guys are working on securing the scene but until they do even they can't go in there." I stand on my tip toes, from here I might be able to get an eye on the library. "Brian, any idea how many people are in the library? Should I request more ambulances?" Brian is about to speak when he gets a call on his radio. "Yep okay, okay, good. I will get them in place." Brian said. "Hey Stef, my guys have secured the scene and are starting to head in and assess the damage. Will you help me get the ambulances lined up?" I head towards the waiting ambulances and let them know that the firefighters have gone in and could be out in any moment. The emts head back to their rigs to get ready for anyone that may need them. An ambulance takes off towards two firefighters carrying a stretcher and while I can't see clearly who it is, I can see that it's not Mariana. I head towards the area as close to the school as I am going to get. I know I can't do too much but at least I can be there to hold Marianas hand as soon as they find her.

 **Mariana POV**

I open my eyes. The light is blinding and I do all I can to shield my eyes. I try and remember where my phone is when I see a firefighter coming towards me and he gets on the ground. "Hi, I'm Ray. Can you tell me your name and your age?" "I'm Mariana and I'm 15. My head hurts." I say. "Don't worry, my partner David and I are going to help you." Ray gets up and I go back to closing my eyes in the hopes that I can calm my head a bit. With my eyes closed I don't fall asleep I can hear everything that is going on. I lay as still as I can for what feels like hours when I hear some kind of power tool going on. I try and block out the noise, it makes me wince because it is so loud. Suddenly I feel a literal weight off my back. I open my eyes and see that the girl that I had tried to reach out earlier is gone. I hope she is okay and that Ray and David got her out okay. Ray lays down in front of me. "Hi Mariana, you have done so well. We are almost ready to move you but I want to know, besides your head, does anything else hurt?" I take a minute to assess. My head hurts, but I already told him that. "Um, my neck hurts, and my back." "Okay thanks Mariana. This is Lola, she is a paramedic, she is going to help us get you out of here. On my count we are going to turn her onto the stretcher. 1,2,3." They flip me over and start moving me. I get through the school and notice that there is a lot of damage, this must have been one heck of an earthquake. Before I know it we are outside and I can see Mom waiting. "Mom, I yell as loud as I can. Mom, MOM!. That last mom catches her eye and she runs over to me and grabs my hand and starts showering me with kisses.

 **Stef POV**

"MOM!" I hear my sweet baby girls voice. The voice I was worried I may never hear again. I look around and see her being carried out on a stretcher. I run up to her, grab her hand and start kissing her all over. I look over at the paramedic asking her with my look what is going on. "She has a lot of bruising and some cuts that we can see. She likely has a concussion. We are going to Sacred Cross. Would you like to come with us?" We walk past Lena on our way into the ambulance. Lena sees us and comes running over. We chat I kiss her, get in the ambulance and leave.

 **Lena POV**

"It's okay Jesus. Mom is here, I'm sure she will find your sister. We are all worried." I hugged my middle son just a little tighter. All the kids and I are on edge not knowing if Mariana is okay. Mine and Jesus hug turned into a group hug. It was then when I saw Stef out of the corner of my eye. As Stef gets closer I can see Mariana on a stretcher and I instantly point that out to the other kids. Once they see it, we all seem to breathe a collective sigh of relief. Stef walked past and she comes running over. "The firefighters found her, she is safe. The paramedics are taking her to Sacred Cross. I'm gonna go with them. Meet you there?" Stef said as she leaned in and kissed me. She left and I turned around to tell the kids. "Hey guys, Mom said they found Mariana. She is on her way to Sacred Cross. She needs to be checked out. Let's go. I will let Monte know that we are leaving." I texted Hey Monte, Mariana was found safe and is on route to the hospital. I'm taking the kids and heading there. I will keep you posted as much as I can.


	3. Chapter 3

**This chapter is going to be from Marianas perspective. It is all about her after all...**

I lay there, not able to move, everything hurts. I can see mom holding my hand, but somehow can't feel it. I hope it's just temporary. We get into the ambulance and there is a flurry of activity. There is so much going on, I can't wrap my head around it. I can see the medics and mom talking, I have no idea if they are talking to me. My head is so cloudy. Whoa here we go, all of a sudden my stomach lurches and I feel sick. "I think I'm going to be sick" I say. It's one of the first coherent sentences I have been able to verbalize for the last few minutes. Before I know it, mom is there with a bag for me as I loose what is left of my breakfast. She is also there to rub my shoulder. For a brief moment, having mom rub my shoulder is at least dulling the ache that has taken over my whole body. I hand the bag back when I am done. And we stop. I am grateful for that. But then the chaos starts again. The ambulance doors open and I see like 20 people waiting for me. I am whisked away and it's so sudden that I feel mom kiss me, tell me she loves me and then I am gone from her.

"Hello Mariana, I'm Doctor Polson. I want you to tell me what hurts". I try to verbalized what hurts but can't seem to find the words again. All I can do is point. I point to my head, my chest, my stomach and my back. The doctor nods at me. "Good girl, thank you for letting me know." Doctor Polson says. 'Mariana, do you see then end of this pen, I want you to follow it with your eyes." the doctor says. I try to follow it but it's too far away to see clearly. "Closer please. I can't see it." I say. I'm starting to get nervous and scared. "Where is my mom, I want my mom. I want to go home." I say to the doctor. "Mariana, you are doing such a great job, we just want to see what is going on and soon enough, your mom will be able to come back and help you get ready to go home." Doctor Polson says. I hear a bunch of big medical words that I dont understand and then the sides of my bed are lifted and we are on the move. I close my eyes as the light is really starting to make my head hurt. I hear the doctor say that we are going for an xray and a cat scan. The xray was quick and then we move over to the cat scan. "Ok Mariana, we are going to do the cat scan now. I need to you lay as still as possible." the doctor told me. The put me into the machine and I can feel my heart start to beat faster, my thoughts race more. Before I can control it I hear myself say "I want out, I want my mom and I want to go home." I am pulled out of the machine and the doctor tries to calm me down. His calming doesn't work. "I want my mom, please I need to see her" I start crying out. I lay there on the bed, crying until I hear the best voice that I have heard since I got here. "Mari, sweetie, please calm down. I want you to listen to me, really listen. Take a deep breath in and out. In and out. In and out. You are doing so well. In and out...I know this is hard and that you are in pain and don't feel well, but me, Mama and your brothers and sister are all here waiting to hug you and love on you when you get out. The faster this cat scan happens the faster you can get home." Mom says. Hearing moms voice helped so much. She made me more relaxed. I could almost feel her trying to rub my shoulder through the glass. The doctor walks in asks me if I'm ready and I say yes and I am moved into the cat scan. I hear some beeping and then it is done. It really wasn't all that bad, I'm not really sure why I got all worked up earlier. I am heading back to what I can only assume is the room when I find myself falling asleep.

When I wake up my family is all around me. Mama rubs my stomach as my eyelids flutter and Mom rubs my shoulder. My eyes open and I blink a few times. Then I rub my eyes, my vision is still a little blurry. "Hey everyone, thanks for being here." I say smiling at them. I look over and Jesus is the first of my siblings to come over. "I was so scared when they couldn't find you and when you got rushed here in the ambulance. I'm so glad you are awake. I got you some flowers, a teddy bear and some balloons. I didn't know what you would want. Can I hug you?" Jesus says. "Yes just please be gentle. That does for all of you" Mama said. As soon as she is done, Jesus practically lunged at me. It went the same with the others. I yawned. I looked at Mom, "I'm getting kind of tired. Do you think that you can find the doctor and ask if we can go please? I really want to sleep in my own bed tonight." "Will do. Sit tight my love." she tells me.

Mom walks into the room and asks "Lena, can I see you out in the hallway please?" I was just left on the bed with my siblings chatting. I hope they are talking to the doctor I think to myself...


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey all, so sorry for the delay. I got a new job recently and it has kept me very busy. Like a test every week busy. Here is part 4. I am also working on part 5. Hopefully there wont be as long of a delay. I don't own the Fosters but I wish I did...**

"Hello ladies, I've been reviewing Marianas file and I have some news. I have to tell Mariana and with her consent I can tell both of you as well. I am wondering if it's at all possible to have you guys ask the other kids to step out of the room while we talk." The doctor said. "Of course" Stef said as she walked to the room. "Hey guys, the doctor needs to talk to Mariana, me and Mama. It's getting late. Why don't you guys head home and start getting ready for bed. One or both of us will be home later. Okay? Can you do that. I love you all. If you all want to sleep in the big bed tonight you can." Stef said as she kissed each one of the kids good bye as they in turn kissed and hugged Mariana good bye. "Hey B wait up a sec. I don't know if Mariana is coming home tonight or not and if she doesn't at least one of us will be staying over for the night. You are in charge. Please make sure everyone gets fed, showered and to bed. There is an emergency $50 in the purple sock in the top drawer of my dresser. Thank you. Love you." Stef said. "I will take good care of the others." Brandon said smiling.

Mariana POV

My brothers and sister left and Mom, Mama and I were just enjoying the moment when the doctor walked in. "Okay Mariana how are you feeling? Please be honest with me the doctor said. "My head still hurts and it hurts to breathe a bit but other then that I am feeling okay. Can I go home?" I asked. I really was scared of being here and all I want is to go home, take a shower, put on my favorite pjs and head off to sleep. "Mariana I want to talk to you about what is going on with you. Are you okay if your moms stay?" the doctor said. "Please Mom and Mama. Stay." I said as she grabbed for mamas hand. The doctor took a few steps in, turned on a light screen, attached an xray and pulled out a stool with wheels. "Here is a copy of your x-ray. As you can see looking here and here, that your ribs are broken. You have also sprained one of your vertebrae and given your neurological test results I also think you have a mild concussion. I know you want to go home, but I think for the night it's best for you to stay here. One or both of your moms are welcome to stay. Are you hungry? I'm sure I can get a nurse to bring you a snack or some water if you want something to drink." the doctor asked. "I'm kind of thirsty. I'm not hungry, actually I feel a little nauseous. Since I can't go home for the night, mom will you stay with me please?" I asked. "Of course I will. We can have a slumber party. It will be fun." mom said. "Mariana, an upset stomach is to be expected as a possible side effect of the pain medication we have you on. If it gets really bad, I will bring you something but in the mean time, have a good quiet night with your mom. If you need anything, just press the call button and one of the nurses will come and get me. I will be here all night. Good night ladies." The doctor said as he left the room. Mama leaned over and kissed me and mom. "I love you so much. Sleep well. If you want you can call me anytime you want. Tell mom if you need anything while you are here. I will be back first thing in the morning." mama said. Once mama was gone, I asked mom "do you think mama is mad at me because I asked you to stay and not her? I love her and I love you too but I just really want you here with me tonight. "Oh my love, I promise you mama isn't mad. I want to let you in on a little secret but if you tell your brothers or sister, I will deny it. Mama and I know who each of you need when you are struggling. For you we know that when you are sick you tend to gravitate to mama but when you are scared or need to feel protected you come to me. I kind of figured that you would want me to stay. Didn't it seem odd to you that I already had a change of clothes here." mom said. "I actually thought that you both had actually packed bags. Anyway, mom, I'm kind of tired, do you think we could go to bed please?" I said. "Of course my love. Sleep well. If you need anything wake me up." mom said as she leaned over and kissed my cheek and tucked me in. I had to admit to myself at that moment, I felt quite loved. I was still in pain but as I drifted off to sleep I was comforted knowing that I was safe and sound.


	5. Chapter 5

Mariana POV

I open my eyes. I have no idea what time it is. It's sometime in the morning, the sun is up. I look over and see mom still asleep. I really need to use the ladies room so I try to sit up. My movement wakes mom up. "Good morning love." mom says as she slowly adjusts to the brightness that is filling the room. "What are you doing?" she asks. "I really have to go to the ladies room but when I move everything starts to hurt. Can you help me please?" I ask. "Maybe we should get a nurse in here to help." Mom said as she sees me wince in pain. She decides to press my nurse call button. "Nurse Julie, how can I help?" Nurse Julie says over the p.a. "My daughter needs to use the ladies room and she is in a lot of pain. Can you help us?" Mom said. "I'm on my way." Nurse Julie said.

"Good morning ladies. Mariana, did you sleep okay?" Nurse Julie asks. "Not really. It was kind of loud with all the machines and really bright this morning. I really need to use the ladies room though and then can I nap?" I say. Nurse Julie slowly helps me get out of bed and mom walks over to one side to help steady me. The walk is slow and painful, I sure am glad that it isn't very far away from my bed. "Do you think you will need help in there? Would you like me or your mom to help if you do?"Nurse Julie asks. "Mom, will you help me?" "Of course my love." She says as she smiles at me. Nurse Julie leaves us to it. I do what I need to and mom gets beside me to help steady me again as we head back to bed. I got back into bed wincing along the way and am just about to fall asleep when the doctor walks in. "Hows my favorite patient doing today? Nurse Julie tells me you are in pain" the doctor says. "I'm tired and it hurt to try and get out of bed." I said. "Okay. Let me do a short exam and then I will reassess your meds and then we will get you some breakfast and then possibly home." he says. He leans over and takes a look at all my injuries and does some tests. "So your injuries look like they are healing as well as can be expected. There is some breakfast on it's way to you. I want you to eat and then I will be back and we will work on adjusting your medication. It will work better on a full stomach." he says as he walks out.

Mom leans over and kisses my forehead and then an orderly shows up with breakfast. "Thank you" I say as she smiles on her way out. I lift the lid and look at the most unappetizing breakfast I've ever seen. In fact the more I look at it the more nauseous it makes me. "Mom, are Mama and the others coming to visit today? Can Mama bring me banana pancakes? This breakfast doesn't look so good." I say as I take the lid off and show her. "Ew. I will place your order with Mama. Im sure she will be more than happy to see if mama can bring them for you. If not, I will go and get them. Whatever you want." She says as she sends a text. I close my eyes and drift off to sleep knowing it's going to be at least a half hour before mama gets here.

"Mariana, sweetheart, pancakes are here. Wake up." I hear this and slowly open my eyes. "Hi Mama. Thanks for the pancakes." I say. Mom comes over and helps me sit up a bit while I eat my pancakes. "These are so good. Thank you so much mama. Are the others here?" "They are in the waiting room. I didn't want to overwhelm you." Mama says. The doctor walks in "how is breakfast? I see someone smuggled you in breakfast." the doctor says with a wink. "I hope it's okay. I didnt really find the breakfast that was brought in all that appetizing." I said. "Mariana, as long as you eat, I really don't care what it is. Your pancake secret is safe with me. So I was looking over your file and I think I'm going to give you a prescription for morphine. I want to keep at a fairly low dose, it could cause an addiction." the doctor said. "Will it take the pain away for her?"mom asks. "The plan isn't to take the pain away and make Mariana loopy. The plan is to take enough of an edge off the pain that she is able to have some relief from the pain and can get some sleep but not so much that the pain goes away and the pills make her high. I'm going to start with the second lowest dose possible and see how that works. If it works, I will write you a prescription and then you can go home. Once you finish your pancakes, wait about 15 minutes and then take one of these pills. I will be back to check on you in about a half hour." the doctor said.

As the doctor left Jesus walked in. "How are you feeling? I couldn't sleep without you at home last night. I was so worried. Has the doctor told you when you can go home? I got out your night night and put it on the bed for you." he said. "Im ok. Im in a lot of pain and I am tired but I had great pancakes for breakfast and I think I get to go home today." I say. "Where are Brandon, Callie and Jude?" "They are at school. They wanted to be here but each of them have a test today. So we thought it would be best for them to go to school. They will meet us at home later today. I think its time to take your pill." mama says as she hands me the pill and a glass of water. "I'm going to take a nap now. Jesus please stay." I say. Mom and mama head out of the room, I haven't seen mom eat yet so I hope that she and mama are on their way to the cafeteria for food.

I'm not sure how long I've been sleeping but I suddenly feel really queasy. I actually feel like I might be sick. I wake up and call for Jesus. "Call moms. I don't feel good." I tell him. "What's wrong?" he asks. "I think, I gag, I'm going, I gag, to be" and I find a basin in front of me while I lose the contents of my breakfast. I'm in the middle of getting sick when moms walk in. Mom takes over Jesus spot holding the basin while mama is rubbing the top of my back where it doesn't hurt. I look up when I finish and am glad that moms are here. "What happened?" mom asked. "I dont know. I was napping and then I felt queasy and then this happened. Can you call the nurse?"

"Hi Mariana. How can I help?" Julie says. "Can you come in please?" mama says. "On my way" Julie says. She always sounds so cheerful. Nurse Julie walks in and sees the basin "What happened here?" she asks. "I was napping, felt queasy and then this happened." I say. "I'll call the doctor and then be right back" she says as she leaves.

"Hi Mariana, Julie tells me that you got sick. Did you take the morphine before you got sick?" he said. "Yes." I say. "how long after taking the pill did you get sick?" "I dont know, I was napping" "It was 24 minutes, I checked." Jesus said. "Okay, so it's possible that it is the pill that caused this. Im going to try you on the lowest dose and see what happens. Try this." the doctor says. I'm not looking forward to this but I do it anyway. I get the pill down, and just try and relax. No more then 5 minutes later, I have that same queasy feeling. I look around for the basin that Julie changed for me and manage to grab it just in time to vomit this pill as well. just as before, mom, mama and Jesus are right there. "I want to go home." I say. As though he knew what was going on, the doctor arrived in the room again. "So it seems that the pill form of morphine just doesn't like you. There is another option, it may work. I can give you morphine by injection and show your moms how to do it. If this works and you manage to not get sick for an hour, then you can go home." he says. "I hope you are okay with needles." he says. He calls moms over to show them how to do it and where to do it and I turn my head. Once the needle is done, I lean back and close my eyes. I figure an hour nap is better then n nap.

"Mariana, honey, wake up. It's time to go home." I hear mom say. "Home" I say. I get out of bed, I notice I'm not nearly in as much as I was earlier in the day and mama helps me slowly get dressed. "Where is mom?" I ask. "She snuck out to get the car." mama says. "You ready sis?" Jesus says as he glides in on a wheelchair. "Julie said we have to wheel you out to the car. I get into the wheelchair and Jesus little turns me and the wheelchair into the indy 500. When we get to the car, mom and Jesus help me into the car and we leave. I look back on this place hoping I dont have to be back any time soon.


	6. Chapter 6

**Hey all so I had a bit of writers block and then life got in the way. Hopefully this will be welcomed and a new chapter will follow very soon. I promise no more long gaps.**

Mariana POV:

I slowly get into the house, leaning on Mom for support. I look around the house, it's exactly the same as I left it but somehow it feels different. I take the deepest breath I can without it being painful and let it out slowly. I'm starting to feel the exhaustion that escaped me at the hospital. A few naps here and there really weren't enough. "I don't know about you, but I'm exhausted. I'm going to go to bed. Thank you for everything over the last few days" I say as I head towards the stairs. Mom follows me closely. I get about 2 steps up and stop, the pain is excruiating. I brace myself and say "I can't do it, it hurts." Mom looks at me and grabs my waist to help me down the stairs and says "Oh fun, campout out on the couch tonight." "I'll get blankets" Mama says. I sit down on the couch and say "You both dont have to stay with me, I'm a big girl. I can sleep down here alone.""What you mean you don't want to have a slumber party with your moms?" Mom says in a fake hurt tone. "Besides, miss thing, you are due for another dose of your pain medicine very soon."

Mama comes down with the blankets yawning. "I checked on your brothers and sister. Jesus was still awake, but I told him that you were home and camping out down here tonight so that made him relieved. I rubbed his back for a few minutes and then he was out like a light. He's just glad that you are home. As are we all." She says. I know she was saying that more to mom then me, but it's comforting a little to know that the rest of my siblings are relaxing. I see mom yawn and realize that my moms must be as exhausted as I am. I slowly start laying down on the couch and manage to do that comfortably for about five minutes before the pain in my ribs increases that I dart back to a sitting position from the horrible pain. "Can I have an extra pillow please?" I ask. I hope that maybe the combination of more pain medication and another pillow behind me will help me sleep for a bit. "Any chance I can have the pain meds now please?" I ask. "Sure thing." Mom gets up and Mama grabs a seat on the couch beside me. She reaches her hand to rub the top of my back where she knows it doesnt hurt. Mom comes back with a glass of water and my medicine injection. She sits down on the other side of me, and I pull down the top of my pants to expose my hip and she sticks the needle in. It stings for a second and I almost want to cry, but I am to tired to do that. I have a drink of the water mom brought me and lean my head back and close my eyes.

I have no idea how long I have been asleep when I wake up. I put my hand over my stomach, I feel really nauseous all of a sudden. I must have been louder or moved more than I thought as I see Mamas eyes open and she gets up and starts to rub my knee. "Mama, I feel sick." Mama grabs a garbage can just in time for me to be sick. The commotion wakes up mom, and when I am done, she sits beside on the couch and rubs my leg until i fall back asleep again.

Stef POV:

"That's it sweetheart, just go slowly." I say to my daughter who has leaned in against me for support. I see her take a few minutes to examine the house. It's almost as though she has been gone for months and is just trying to remember the familiar things. I hear her say she's exhausted and thank Lena and I for everything. We slowly head toward the stairs and I reposition myself so I am behind her as we start to head up. Mariana takes slowly gets to the second step when I hear her say that it is too painful. It breaks my heart that she is in so much pain. I know that Mariana needs sleep so I quickly think about how to get her to sleep down here. "Oh fun. How about a camp out on the couch tonight?" I propose hoping that she will see it as fun and not a failure to get to bed and be at least a bit more comfortable. Lena heads off to get blankets as I stay with Mariana. She says we don't have to stay with her, so I look at her and in a fake hurt tone say "what you mean you don't want to have a slumber party with your moms? Besides Miss Thing you are due for another dose of your pain medicine very soon".

Lena comes down with extra blankets after having checked on the other kids and letting them know that we are all home. I start to yawn, the exhaustion of the day really starting to set in, and help to get Mariana lying down on the couch. We get settled when 5 minutes later she sits upright and asks for another pillow and her pain medicine. I smile and go get a pillow from the nook, her meds and a glass of water from the kitchen and come back to the living room. I sit down beside Mariana and she exposes her hip. I put the needle in wincing as I do, this has to be painful, and in a moment the meds are in and her hip is covered. She drinks the water, and that makes me relieved. She hasn't really had much to eat or drink all day. She leans her head back and closes her eyes and once I know she is asleep I find myself doing the same.

I have no idea how long I was sleeping for when I am woken up by the sound of someone being sick. It takes a moment to get my bearings but I quickly realize that it is Mariana and Lena is holding a garbage can underneath her. It seems she is like this for a while. When she finishes she hands Lena the can and I sit beside her, kiss her on the top of the head and rub her leg until she is calm enough to fall asleep again. As with before once I know she is asleep I too follow.


	7. Chapter 7

Mariana POV:

Somehow I managed to stay sleeping all night. Or at least I think I did. When I look around, I see moms on an air mattress on the floor and Jude in the kitchen pouring cereal.

"Good morning Jude, could you be the best brother and get my glasses. They should be on the table beside my bed?" I ask. "Be right back" he smiles. I sit quietly just enjoying the silence for the few moments until Jude shows up again. "Here Mari. Did I wake you up when I was in the kitchen? Are you really going to be okay?" He asks quick enough for me to not be able to answer in between. "No you didn't wake me up, the aching in my back woke me up and yes I will be okay. It will take time but I will be okay. Thanks for getting these for me." I say. Jude heads back into the kitchen to resume his breakfast.

Mama wakes up as Jesus bounds down the stairs. "Hey Mari, good morning. Did you sleep okay? How are you feeling?" She asks. "I slept okay. It was painful, but not so bad that I didn't sleep. I think I was just more exhausted than we all thought. I'm kind of hungry, could I have a grilled cheese for breakfast?" I ask. "My love, of course you can. Give me 10 minutes." Mama says. She heads to the kitchen and kisses Jude and starts on the breakfast. I sit forward on the couch a bit and rub my back, when mom wakes up. "Good morning sweetheart" she says as she yawns. "Here you are my love" Mama says as she walks over with the grilled cheese on a plate. "Want to eat here or at the table with your brothers?" She asks. "Um the table" I say hoping that standing up will help my aching back. I get up and slowly walk to the table. The pain is there but it's not horrible. I sit down on the stool in the kitchen and start eating my grilled cheese. It is so good. It takes away the sudden hunger pang now in my stomach. Moms come over and join me. I finish my breakfast, get up and put my plate in the sink and stand up slowly. I see how much more my back hurts just from sitting on the stool. "Mom, can we go to the doctor today? I don't want to take my pain medicine because it makes me sick. I am hoping that they can give me something else." I say. "Let me see if I can make an appointment for sometime today. If not than as early as possible." she says. I slowly walk back to the couch. I sit down and notice that I really, really could use a shower, I feel like it's been a month since I last showered. "Um Mom, I know that going upstairs really hurts, but I really want a shower. If I take one dose of my pain meds than can I shower? I know it will make me sick but I also know that I feel gross and am willing trade feeling sick for a few minutes for feeling gross all day." I asked. "If that is what you want then yes, lets get you some meds and into the shower. I think Mama just got off the phone, lets see if she got you in with the doctor today first." Mom says. Mama looks at me as she hangs up and says "So the doctor just had a cancellation and if we leave now, we can be seen right away." "I'm still wearing my pajamas and I haven't showered. Any chance we can go in later in the day?" I ask. "Apparently it's now or not for 5 more days. Mom will run upstairs and get you a change of clothes. Go get the hair brush from the bathroom down here and you can brush your hair in the car. Hurry, we don't want to be late" Mama says as mom heads upstairs and I head to get the brush.

I'm just coming out of the bathroom when Mom meets me with a pair of jeans and my favorite hoodie. I slip the clothes over my pajamas and know that if I have to change at the office then I will worry about that then. I get on my shoes, mom wraps her arm around me and we get into the car. I doze off a bit in the backseat and before I know it we are at the doctors office. Mama checks us in while Mom and I slowly walk in. We are about to sit down when the nurse comes out to get me. Once I'm situated in the room, in a hospital gown and just enjoying the silence when the doctor walks in. "Good morning Mariana, I see you are struggling on your current medication. Tell me about it." the doctor says. "Well it makes me sick to my stomach, or vomit or both and it doesn't really take all the pain away, it just makes it easier to deal with. I really don't want to get sick anymore". "That does happen on occasion. I think that we will try something else. Moms any allergies to ibuprofen?" The doctor asks. "She's never had any issue before." Mom says. "Okay so we are going to try you on a high ish dose and see if that helps. I think that it should take down some swelling and also provide you with better, more consistent pain relief. Here's the prescription and it along with a regimen of ice and heat should help with everything." The doctor says. "Do you have any other concerns, anything else ache or cause you pain? Are you sleeping okay?" the doctor asks. "My back hurts right now, and I slept okay, but I think it's because I was exhausted." I say. "Thanks for telling me that, may I look at your back?" the doctor asks as she heads behind me. I nod. "My hands might be a bit cold but I'm going to try and be brief." she says as she starts looking at my back and feeling around. "Okay so I think Mariana would benefit from seeing a chiropractor as well as a massage therapist. There is definitely some swelling and while the pain should be managed by the ibuprofen, it would just be temporary. The chiropractor can readjust her as needed and the massage therapist can get deep into the tissue and take care of it." She says as she turns away to write something down. "I've written down the names of the best chiropractor and massage therapist I know. If you take this to my receptionist out front she will set up an appointment for you. So now, go home, relax, have a movie day with your moms and if you need anything else, give me a call. Take a piece of candy before you go." She says. I get changed slowly with Mamas help while mom goes to get the car and I take a fun size chocolate bar from the candy dish and put it in my pocket as mama and I walk towards the receptionist. "Hello, the doctor said that I should give this to you to make appointments." Mama says as she hands over the paper. "Please have a seat, I will have appointments in a few minutes." the receptionist says. "Okay so Marianas appointment with the chiropractor is tomorrow at 1:30pm if that works or 5:30pm if it doesn't. They have held both spots and will confirm the one I tell them. And the appointment with the massage therapist is 9am Saturday morning. Here are the cards for both locations. Which time would you prefer for the chiro?" the receptionist asks. "1:30 tomorrow is good." Mama says. "Okay so consider the appointment confirmed. Please arrive there at least 15 minutes early so you can fill out some forms. Have a good day." the receptionist says as we leave.

I get into the car and close my eyes. The car stops and I wake up assuming that we are home. When I look around I see that we are at the pharmacy and mom is already inside. "Mama can I go in and get a treat please?" I ask. "Mom is on meds and treat patrol. I bet you anything she will be out with your favorite ice cream and enough mint chocolate to feed a small army." Mama says. Mom gets back in the car with two bags. "So I got ice cream, 6 mint chocolate bars, some salt and vinegar potato chips and some of your favorite gummy bears. That should be more than enough for our afternoon movie marathon." Mom says.

We get home and I get settled on the couch in between moms with the tub of ice cream and a spoon. I sit there not in pain for the first time, having taken the ibuprofen and am relaxing watching the beginning of Pitch Perfect.


	8. Chapter 8

I could say that my biggest hardship was being abandoned by my mother and put into foster care at a young age and write you a good paper but I don't remember all of that. My biggest hardship is a lot more recent. About 6 months ago, I was in my school library doing a makeup assignment and there was an explosion in the library caused by a gas leak.

The explosion caused a shelf with a number of books to fall on top of me, trapping me until I could be freed by the fire department. I laid there in pain with my mind racing about a million miles a minute. I remember the instant relief of seeing my mom, who is a police officer, and having her with me in the ambulance. I never realized that the simple act of seeing my mom, almost as a light at the end of the tunnel, could make the pain just that much less. She somehow took away the pain that comes with the fear of the unknown. No matter else was going to happen, my mom was with me.

In the days and weeks that followed, the physical pain got worse and then got better. The emotional pain got worse. While noises sounding like explosions and saws still cause me to fall into a mild panic attack, with the help of my therapist, these too, are getting better. I have the strategies I need to cope and know that I can lean on my therapist when I need to. My siblings were amazing. They took great care of me. They got me things that I couldn't reach, or get something from upstairs when I physically couldn't make it up the stairs. I didn't have to ask twice. My other mom, my Mama (my moms are lesbians) was as amazing as my mom. She is the vice principal at the school where I go and the explosion happened she appealed to the school board to update the safety standards and lobbied the governor to update the building code laws so that there can't be gas lines running underneath a school anymore.

I have thought long and hard about what I want to do with my life and it was never 100% clear until this ordeal that I want to help. I want to be the doctor that helps a teen who has been in accident, get back to her normal life, the doctor who calms fears, shows courage and empathy. That is why I want to be in this school and this program.

Thank you,

Mariana Adams Foster

And it was after reading this essay, checking her SAT scores, and glowing recommendations from her teachers, Mariana got into John Hopkins.


End file.
